Resource fidelity, brood distribution and foraging dynamics in complete laboratory colonies of<i>Reticulitermes flavipes</i>(Isoptera Rhinotermitidae)

Abstract

Entire Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar) (Isoptera Rhinotermitidae) colonies foraged within networks of spatially-separated laboratory feeding sites, providing an unprecedented opportunity to observe the behavior of complete colonies as they investigated, occupied, and moved among three resources. Travel between the resource nodes was observed, and after 30 weeks all 13 colonies were censused. None of the castes were distributed equally among the three resources. Reproductives, found in satellite nodes in 71% of colonies, and brood did not share the same node a significant portion of the time, suggesting that the nesting strategy was polydomous rather than monodomous. Mark-recapture sampling indicated that workers were significantly more likely to be found in the resource where they had been located previously, indicating (i) they feed non-randomly among the multiple resources and (ii) they feed extensively at one location rather than shuttling regularly between satellite and central nodes. These results suggest that R. flavipes are at least facultatively dispersed central-place foragers rather than obligate central-place foragers. These alternative nesting and foraging strategies modify our understanding of population dynamics and spatial distribution of colonies.